Middle East. File Image / AI Generated

• UKMTO Warning 134-26: vessel hit by unknown projectile in the Strait of Hormuz late on Saturday
• Fire on board and crew evacuated; UKMTO has not named the vessel
• Iranian media: container ship hit off Qeshm, one crew member killed, at least three injured
• Second merchant vessel hit in the region in a week after the Hercules Star attack off Dubai
• Iran-Oman talks on a temporary Hormuz shipping lane, due Monday, postponed, Bloomberg reports

Late on Saturday a vessel transiting the Strait of Hormuz was struck by an unknown projectile and caught fire, with local authorities evacuating the crew over the weekend, the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said in a warning issued on Sunday.

The incident was reported at 23:00 UTC on Saturday, and the status of the crew, the extent of damage, and any environmental impact were unknown at the time of the first report, UKMTO said in Warning 134-26, which places the incident in the strait to the north of the Musandam peninsula.

"A fire has broken out onboard the vessel following the reported attack. Local authorities are on the scene and assisting in evacuating crew members," the agency said in an update, advising vessels to transit with caution while the authorities investigate.

UKMTO did not name the vessel, and two different identifications have since been reported.

Iranian media, citing the governor of Qeshm, Hossein Amir Teymoori, said an Iranian commercial container vessel with ten crew was struck by an unidentified projectile at about 05:00 local time on Sunday near Hengam Island, off the Shib Deraz coast of Qeshm, with a fire breaking out and local authorities evacuating the crew.

According to the Islamic Republic News Agency, one crew member was killed and at least three others were injured, the governor said, blaming a "terrorist enemy" while saying neither the type of projectile nor those responsible had been identified.

Separately, maritime security firm Vanguard Tech was reported to have identified the vessel in UKMTO's warning as a Panama-flagged tanker that had sent a distress call, with the Omani navy responding to evacuate the crew.

It is unclear whether the two reports referred to the same vessel.

The weekend attack came as diplomacy over the strait appeared to stall.

On Friday oil prices fell more than 2% on a report that a deal to manage shipping through Hormuz was in the works, and Iran had been due to present its agreement with Oman on a temporary shipping lane to Gulf foreign ministers in Salalah on Monday.

That meeting has been postponed "in the interests of consensus", Oman's foreign minister said, according to Bloomberg, with negotiations on details including the fees ships may be charged to continue between the two countries.

The incident follows last week's escalation in and around the Gulf, including the attack on the Peninsula-chartered tanker Hercules Star off Dubai that killed a seafarer, US strikes on five Iranian tankers, and the Revolutionary Guards' claim to have fired on eight tankers in the strait.